If you’ve never heard of Bliss n Eso, you’re probably not alone, but it might surprise you to find out that Bliss and Eso are Australia’s premiere hip hop music artists, and have a professional music career that spans more than a decade. Bliss n Eso is actually a trio of musicians. MC Bliss, also known as Jonathan Notley, is an American. MC Eso, an Australian, is also known as Max MacKinnon, and DJ Izm, a Moroccan, known as Tarik Ejjamai, rounds out the group.

Trio Takes To North America

The group met in high school and has performed together since that time. They occupy Australia’s top spot in terms of hip-hop artists, in a field that’s becoming more crowded every day. The group focuses on its lyrics and beats but has tried to avoid developing a predictable style.

They regularly perform live and still include traditional rap techniques like scratching and beatboxing to achieve their unique sound. While they’ve moved around from label to label, the group has also opened for some of rap’s most recognizable acts, including 50 Cent, G-Unit, and Lil Jon. Bliss and Eso have been nominated for ARIA awards, Australia’s version of the Grammys.

Bliss n Eso aren’t your typical hip-hop musical act, and have been very active in a number of charitable causes. The group’s work has helped fund relief work in South Africa as well as in Victoria, Australia. They’ve toured the US several times and have released four albums, one of which was certified gold and the group’s most recent release, Running on Air, was certified platinum.

If any of this surprises you, it shouldn’t. Hip-hop, as a musical artform, has demonstrated itself to be among the most culturally flexible, and has inspired musicians and artists from all over the world. New musicians find the genre to be welcoming, and relatively easy to break into, compared to other musical genres like rock.

Hip-hop, when combined with the ability to self-produce, self-publicize and self-distribute music, turns out to be highly appealing to listeners all over the world. There’s no easier way to start in the music business today than by producing your own hip-hop and rap beats.

Unlike other genres, it’s both acceptable and expected that artists who are just trying to break into the music scene will create and distribute free mixtapes of their music. If you’re an aspiring artist and are considering going this route, check out some of the best tools available on the market today, like dubTurbo and Sonic Producer. Download your copy of one or both of these applications, and you’ll be making your own unique sounds in no time!

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Four of the top new musical acts from 2011 deliver rap beats or hip-hop music to their growing cadre of adoring fans, according to Ace Showbiz. That’s a pretty neat answer to those who claim that rap music has lost its relevance somewhere along the way. Rap music is highly influential, and has been since it hit the music scene, and with at least 40% of the top acts being rap or hip-hop, rap music still has a long way to go.

Fresh Faces Dominate Fresh Music

The classic rappers are now the industry’s elder statesmen, as the second generation of rappers move into the music industry. Diggy Simmons is no exception. Son of Run DMC rapper Rev Run, Simmons is well on his way to his own claim to fame, hitting Ace Showbiz’s list at Number 3. Simmons isn’t new to the rap scene. He’s been self-producing and self-publishing his own music since 2009. 2011 is a breakout year for the young rapper, though. He hit the Billboard charts and peaked at number 21 with his first hit single, “Copy Paste.” He’s also received some professional recognitions from BET for his musical talent. He’s definitely on the “watch list” for 2012.

Entering the Ace Showbiz list at Number 6 is Tyler the Creator. Tyler the Creator – like Diggy Simmons – isn’t brand new to the rap and hip-hop scene. He broke in with Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them but that hasn’t stopped him from carving his own path to success. His major solo hit in 2011 was Yonkers – again a self-produced, self-published tune that stirred up a commotion by taking on B.o.B., Hayley Williams and Bruno Mars. The fuss was apparently worth it because the song hit number 9 on the Billboard Hotseeker chart and Tyler the Creator’s album, Goblin, hit the number 5 spot on Billboard’s Hot 200.

Mac Miller pulled a fast one on the hip-hop world by hitting the top album spot on Billboard’s Hot 200 with an independent label – Rostrum Records. That feat was first accomplished in 1995 by the Dogg Pound, and Miller’s Blue Slide Park is the only indie album ever to repeat that. Miller, at just 19 years of age, is certainly an artist to keep an eye on in 2012.

J. Cole rounded out Ace Showbiz’s list in the Number 10 spot. J. Cole had a lot of help from mentor Jay-Z, and it seems to have paid off for the young rapper – whose debut album hit the Number 1 spot. The top spot is a little more special because J. Cole is the first solo act to hit the Number 1 spot with his debut album since B.o.B. J. Cole was also nominated for a Grammy Award for Best New Artist in 2011.

The key takeaway here is that two of the four top acts of 2011 went the self-produced route. They are absolute proof that you can self-produce your own music and be highly successful at it.

If you’re into making rap beats, make your 2012 resolution one that includes self-producing your own music with Sonic Producer, one of the best music production software packages available today.

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In case you’re wondering, Rolling Stone magazine has crowned Eminem the King of Hip Hop. That comes as no big surprise, given the rap beats the rapper laid down on Relapse, Recovery and his latest work with Bad Meets Evil. The only contenders to the throne were rappers who had released at least one solo album between 2009 and mid-2011.

Numbers Game

Between his 7.5 million album sales, his number one rank on Twitter in terms of followers, more than 40 million fans on Facebook and more than 1 billion hits on YouTube, it should come as no surprise that Eminem is on top of the rap heap. No other rapper comes close to those numbers, but the love of one’s fans doesn’t always translate into financial success.

Not to say that Eminem isn’t very well off – he is. But there are other rappers who don’t rap quite as much who end up making more money than him, according to Forbes Magazine. In fact, the King Of Hip Hop found himself in a 3-way for 14th place, along with 50 Cent and Young Jeezy. How does that happen? While other rappers make music, more of their earnings come from sponsorships, product endorsements and production deals than from rap music. For Slim Shady, the money comes from the music and the fans love him for it.

Eminem’s income may get a bump from the $1M+ Chrysler commercial he shot for the Super Bowl, and the deal with Lipton Brisk iced tea, but don’t expect a lot of merchandizing deals from Slim just yet. At 38, he still believes he’s got a lot of rap beats to lay down before he assumes other roles in the music business.

Even though Eminem has a significant lead on other rappers in terms of sales and fans, there’s still plenty of room for new rappers in today’s rap and hip hop music scene. The art form has spent nearly 30 years building a diverse fan base, and rap has been used successfully as a way to reach out to a broad audience.

The genre is far more open to new talent than other musical styles and still represents one of the best, most efficient routes into the music business today. It still takes an investment of time to make the music people want to hear, but new rappers can get into the business by self-producing their own tracks, using something like Sonic Producer. With distribution channels like iTunes readily available to new rappers, there’s no reason not to join the party!

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XXL Magazine has debuted its list of the “most promising hip hop beats, rhymes, artists, labels and more.” The April 2011 issue, which has been in the works for months, features 11 hip hop artists whom you may not have heard of before. It also features some new lists, including Top Five Hip Hop Soul Artists, Top Five New Producers, Top Five New Groups and Top Five New Labels/Companies.

Music Still Open To New Hip Hop Artists

The magazine has produced its “Freshman” introduction for the last four years running. This year, the magazine features hip hop artists Big K.R.I.T, CyHi the Prynce, Diggy Simmons, Fred the Godson, Kendrick Lamar, Lil B, Lil Twist, Mac Miller, Meek Mill, Yelawolf, and YG.

If you haven’t heard of them, you’re not alone. None of these artists has landed on a major label, and most of their press has come from their own hard hustling to earn fans through self-produced music and online distribution. A few of the newcomers do have album deals, though.

So what does being selected as a XXL Freshman mean? Ask some of the alumni, including Big Sean, B.o.B, Kid Cudi, Wale, and Wiz Khalifa. You’re likely to be hearing a lot more about these performers and their hip hop beats in the coming months. Being an XXL Freshman comes along with a lot of publicity. To be sure, there are a few acts that don’t make it, but the staff at XXL have done a pretty good job of picking out the future stars of the hip hop genre each year.

These freshmen also demonstrate that it’s possible to break into the hip hop music scene with not a lot more than some fresh hip hop beats and a lot of determination. Hip hop is a great genre to get into, and there are plenty of great tools out there to help you make your mark. One of the best tools available today is Sonic Producer.

Sonic Producer is a software package that allows you to create professional sounding beats using your own computer. Sonic Producer has everything you need to mix as many as 16 tracks, and it comes loaded with thousands of royalty-free samples that you can use, mix and master to make your own unique sound.

When you make your own beats, you can develop your style the way you want to. You don’t need to spend time and money in a professional recording studio, because you’ll get a great sound out of Sonic Producer.

Use Sonic Producer to make your own beats, mixtapes or music. You decide what you record because you can be your own producer with Sonic Producer. There’s nothing quite like it on the market today. Download your copy and start making your own beats today!

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Eric van Tourneau, the music director for Cirque du Soleil is working with Legacy Records to produce a hip hop remix of songs originally recorded by Elvis Presley. The remixed album will also contain punk genre versions of some of The King’s music.

Reaching Out To Hip Hop Music Fans

Legacy Records Vice President Tom Cording says he’s prepared for complaints from Elvis purists who may not appreciate the newly remixed songs, but says that the remix is a way to bring Elvis’ music to a younger generation of music fans who would otherwise not hear Presley’s music. One single from the album, “Suspicious Minds” has already been released. The new album, entitled Viva Elvis: The Album, will be available November 9.

Renewing older music is a great way to reach out to young music fans who wouldn’t otherwise hear songs. Sonic Producer provides the tools you need to create your own music, remix older tunes and create whole new sounds. One great thing about Sonic Producer is that it provides hundreds of royalty free samples you can use to make your own sound.

Sampling or re-recording someone else’s music is a great way for a new artist to get in trouble. Music is copyrighted and without the permission of the music’s owner, you can quickly find yourself in financial trouble. Sonic Producer’s samples are included with the product, and they’re entirely royalty-free. Anything you create is yours to do with whatever you choose. Export your music to MP3 and share it with your friends, make it available on the Internet, or use it during live performances.

You can also use it as a basis for promoting your own music. Set up a Web site where you can promote your music and make songs, mixtapes and even entire albums. Sonic Producer is one way for you to create the music you want to make.

Don’t know much about producing music? No problem. Sonic Producer can show you how to put together the rap beats people want to hear. Learn how to make a professional-sounding mix in no time. Within hours, you’ll be able to create your own music. Sonic Producer is available for both the Mac and Windows platforms, so you don’t even have to buy any special equipment. Download the software, install it on your computer and get your music career in high gear. There are lots of opportunities to bring your music to the world. Let Sonic Producer help!

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